Reservoir Simulations in a High Performance Cloud Computing Environment

Abstract

Abstract High Performance Cloud Computing (HPCC), which is mature in many industries, is not a new technology, but rather a new method of delivering two resource components of storage capacity and computational power. Within the upstream area of the oil and gas industry, Cloud Computing is very immature, as the industry as a whole has always been challenged by storage and computational capability. However, there is recent evidence to consider using HPCC due to the promise of several benefits, such as flexibility, accessibility and cost reduction (pay-per-use). HPCC can be categorised into private, public or a hybrid model. Scenario-based modeling, the probabilistic approach for uncertainty analysis, risk quantification for existing brown field reservoirs and new perspective green field reservoirs all require a significant amount of computational power and storage capabilities. HPCC may create an opportunity for small to mid-size upstream companies that do not want to invest in infrastructure needed for evaluating scientific applications. In this paper a pilot project was commenced, where Amazon Web Services was used as a public HPCC, with an industry standard reservoir simulation software, known as Eclipse has been used. Multiple simulation cases have been launched to the cloud while transferring large amounts of data between simulated offices. The project involved designing and developing a secure lean agile technology model, which was software vendor agnostic. It was believed that this would drive efficiencies and reliability by being able to dynamically scale up or down computing clusters depending on needs. This paper presents the finding of the project and presents a recommended development methodology for creating both tactical and strategic roadmaps for leveraging trends in HPCC to further unlock potential in the industry by driving innovation and business value.